Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Channing, There is a serious recession on and it is affecting collectible prices across the board. I am picking up collectibles in all fields on Ebay for 20% to 30% of what they were routinely going for 5 years ago. Those who deny the severity of this recession are simply in, well, denial. Beyond that, you certainly know that an auction that gets no interest this week can suddenly get a lot of action three weeks later -- it depends on who is looking at any given time and there's no way to predict that. And then there's the fact that Ebay has become primarily a venue for those looking to make cheap scores. But, besides all those things, there is another issue affecting prices on older material that too many collectors and dealers simply won't face up to. I've been saying this for years and every time I do the sellers on MOPO come out and slap me down and say Oh no, Rita Hayworth/Fred Astaire/Charlie Chaplin/Paul Newman/Steve McQueen/You Name The Star are just as big and just as popular with buyers as they ever were and that paper on those older stars still commands the kind of prices it did 10 or 20 years ago. But the value of any memorabilia is in the *memory* of the beholder. And those who remember -- and want to collect -- material on the stars/films/books/toys of the 1920's, 1930's, 1940's and even the 1950's are far fewer now than they were 10 or 20 years ago. Heck, even the 1970's are now getting to be about 40 years ago. (gasp!) For a young person of today to be big on collecting stuff from the 1950's (about 60 years ago) would like us being back in the 1960's again and caring passionately about collecting stuff from 1910! Actually, it's pretty amazing that so much memorabilia from the 1930's through the 1960's is still in as much demand as it is. Thank god for modern medical science, classic movie channels and The Antiques Road Show. The brutal fact-of-life about collecting any memorabilia is that those who collect it grow older, fill up their walls and shelves, buy less and less as time goes by and eventually they die and drop out of the market completely. While that process is happening, younger generations come along who have their own stars and they are not so hot on the stars of the previous generations. After a few generations, most of the old stars inevitably lose much of their collectible and money-bringing luster. It's just the way life goes. Sure, there will always be a few iconic titles that pull in the bucks because they have become a Legend in the Hobby (whatever hobby you care to name). The newer/younger collectors will always want to buy the Legendary Items because they've heard so much raving about them from the old timers. But just because a star was part of one legendary item does not mean that, over time, the coat tails of that item will extend to that star's other paper. A good example is Steve McQueen in BULLIT. That particular legendary title will always command a good price, but how much do most of the posters for Steve McQueen's *other* movies go for these days? Not much. Honestly, how many people under 40 know much, if anything, about Rita Hayworth? Other than knowing the name is that of a great old movie star I mean. Of those younger buyers who do know something of her and her films, how many care very much, at least as far as their own collections go? Of those younger buyers who know and care somewhat, how much are they willing to pay for a Rita Hayworth lobby card? You found out the the answer: Not much. Time passes. -- JR channinglylethomson wrote: *Is there something wrong with this hobby?* *I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
All very valid and interesting facts of life in this weird hobby. I can understand why lobbies of Rita have and will continue to drop in value, but I think good posters of her will always hold a premium. Does Good girl / bad girl art steadily escalate in value? What about other genres? What is holding and what is not? It seems like romantic dramas die despite star power, but most film noir still seems to command respect even without a big name. Sci-Fi and Horror are obvious winners. And art? Not so much by artist, but subject matter like war, western and circus movies? I'd like to hear what the seasoned pros think. - Ted --- On Sat, 7/3/10, James Richard jrl...@mediabearonline.com wrote: From: James Richard jrl...@mediabearonline.com Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Date: Saturday, July 3, 2010, 2:55 AM Channing, There is a serious recession on and it is affecting collectible prices across the board. I am picking up collectibles in all fields on Ebay for 20% to 30% of what they were routinely going for 5 years ago. Those who deny the severity of this recession are simply in, well, denial. Beyond that, you certainly know that an auction that gets no interest this week can suddenly get a lot of action three weeks later -- it depends on who is looking at any given time and there's no way to predict that. And then there's the fact that Ebay has become primarily a venue for those looking to make cheap scores. But, besides all those things, there is another issue affecting prices on older material that too many collectors and dealers simply won't face up to. I've been saying this for years and every time I do the sellers on MOPO come out and slap me down and say Oh no, Rita Hayworth/Fred Astaire/Charlie Chaplin/Paul Newman/Steve McQueen/You Name The Star are just as big and just as popular with buyers as they ever were and that paper on those older stars still commands the kind of prices it did 10 or 20 years ago. But the value of any memorabilia is in the *memory* of the beholder. And those who remember -- and want to collect -- material on the stars/films/books/toys of the 1920's, 1930's, 1940's and even the 1950's are far fewer now than they were 10 or 20 years ago. Heck, even the 1970's are now getting to be about 40 years ago. (gasp!) For a young person of today to be big on collecting stuff from the 1950's (about 60 years ago) would like us being back in the 1960's again and caring passionately about collecting stuff from 1910! Actually, it's pretty amazing that so much memorabilia from the 1930's through the 1960's is still in as much demand as it is. Thank god for modern medical science, classic movie channels and The Antiques Road Show. The brutal fact-of-life about collecting any memorabilia is that those who collect it grow older, fill up their walls and shelves, buy less and less as time goes by and eventually they die and drop out of the market completely. While that process is happening, younger generations come along who have their own stars and they are not so hot on the stars of the previous generations. After a few generations, most of the old stars inevitably lose much of their collectible and money-bringing luster. It's just the way life goes. Sure, there will always be a few iconic titles that pull in the bucks because they have become a Legend in the Hobby (whatever hobby you care to name). The newer/younger collectors will always want to buy the Legendary Items because they've heard so much raving about them from the old timers. But just because a star was part of one legendary item does not mean that, over time, the coat tails of that item will extend to that star's other paper. A good example is Steve McQueen in BULLIT. That particular legendary title will always command a good price, but how much do most of the posters for Steve McQueen's *other* movies go for these days? Not much. Honestly, how many people under 40 know much, if anything, about Rita Hayworth? Other than knowing the name is that of a great old movie star I mean. Of those younger buyers who do know something of her and her films, how many care very much, at least as far as their own collections go? Of those younger buyers who know and care somewhat, how much are they willing to pay for a Rita Hayworth lobby card? You found out the the answer: Not much. Time passes. -- JR channinglylethomson wrote: Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
I think that the only people who think there is something wrong with this hobby are some dealers and many investors, who have seen sales slow, and some prices drop. For collectors, I don't know that there has ever been a better time to be in this hobby. There are thousands of true no reserve auctions every week, and there are lots of dealers who are tired of looking at the same inventory year after year and are cutting prices to make sales. I see lots of items selling for under where they would have been 20 years ago, and the selection to choose from is remarkable. Sure there are still dealers with sky-high prices, and pretend auctions with over-retail reserves, but the simple solution to that problem is to only deal with those people if they have items you can't find anywhere else (I have no argument with dealers who price items that can't be found anywhere else at high prices; they are obviously content to sit on that item until that right buyer comes along, and that is their choice). If you are any sort of collector and you are not finding lots and lots of excellent deals right now, then you are doing something wrong! Bruce On Sat, Jul 3, 2010 at 2:26 AM, Brude brude2...@yahoo.com wrote: All very valid and interesting facts of life in this weird hobby. I can understand why lobbies of Rita have and will continue to drop in value, but I think good posters of her will always hold a premium. Does Good girl / bad girl art steadily escalate in value? What about other genres? What is holding and what is not? It seems like romantic dramas die despite star power, but most film noir still seems to command respect even without a big name. Sci-Fi and Horror are obvious winners. And art? Not so much by artist, but subject matter like war, western and circus movies? I'd like to hear what the seasoned pros think. - Ted --- On *Sat, 7/3/10, James Richard jrl...@mediabearonline.com* wrote: From: James Richard jrl...@mediabearonline.com Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Date: Saturday, July 3, 2010, 2:55 AM Channing, There is a serious recession on and it is affecting collectible prices across the board. I am picking up collectibles in all fields on Ebay for 20% to 30% of what they were routinely going for 5 years ago. Those who deny the severity of this recession are simply in, well, denial. Beyond that, you certainly know that an auction that gets no interest this week can suddenly get a lot of action three weeks later -- it depends on who is looking at any given time and there's no way to predict that. And then there's the fact that Ebay has become primarily a venue for those looking to make cheap scores. But, besides all those things, there is another issue affecting prices on older material that too many collectors and dealers simply won't face up to. I've been saying this for years and every time I do the sellers on MOPO come out and slap me down and say Oh no, Rita Hayworth/Fred Astaire/Charlie Chaplin/Paul Newman/Steve McQueen/You Name The Star are just as big and just as popular with buyers as they ever were and that paper on those older stars still commands the kind of prices it did 10 or 20 years ago. But the value of any memorabilia is in the *memory* of the beholder. And those who remember -- and want to collect -- material on the stars/films/books/toys of the 1920's, 1930's, 1940's and even the 1950's are far fewer now than they were 10 or 20 years ago. Heck, even the 1970's are now getting to be about 40 years ago. (gasp!) For a young person of today to be big on collecting stuff from the 1950's (about 60 years ago) would like us being back in the 1960's again and caring passionately about collecting stuff from 1910! Actually, it's pretty amazing that so much memorabilia from the 1930's through the 1960's is still in as much demand as it is. Thank god for modern medical science, classic movie channels and The Antiques Road Show. The brutal fact-of-life about collecting any memorabilia is that those who collect it grow older, fill up their walls and shelves, buy less and less as time goes by and eventually they die and drop out of the market completely. While that process is happening, younger generations come along who have their own stars and they are not so hot on the stars of the previous generations. After a few generations, most of the old stars inevitably lose much of their collectible and money-bringing luster. It's just the way life goes. Sure, there will always be a few iconic titles that pull in the bucks because they have become a Legend in the Hobby (whatever hobby you care to name). The newer/younger collectors will always want to buy the Legendary Items because they've heard so much raving about them from the old timers. But just because a star was part of one legendary item does not mean that, over time, the coat tails of that item will extend to
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
7/3/2010 Hello MOPOers -- I got a lot of comments and e-mails from members regarding the subject discussion. I thought I would take a moment and relate the consensus of opinions on this topic. First of all, I should state that I was looking at this question as a result of a low auction sale price on a vintage Rita Hayworth/Fred Astaire linen lobby card from WWII that I had placed on EBAY as a seller. Obviously, I was disappointed with the results. I suppose that means that I am asking this question not from a buyer's point of view but that of a seller and specifically with regard to older Hollywood material that once had a certain luster to it. I've gone through everyone's thoughts and excluded those that I considered self-serving and less significant. 1: the sale price was an obvious disappointment 2: there's a lot of junky material on EBAY causing some people to tune out 3: any auction is obviously a game of chance -- sometimes there is a disappointing result 4: I am honest and don't shill bid up my auctions 5: the current recession is SERIOUS -- people are looking for deals EVERYWHERE 6: most material from the 1930s, 40s, 50s and even 60s in now archaic uninteresting to many collectors 7: there's something to be said for popular genres remaining popular -- sexy women (bad girls) and science-fiction/horror 8: generally speaking, there are very few or no collectors of material on musicals on MOPO I think that about sums it up in my estimation -- I'd like to thank everyone for their input on this question! Best, Channing Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Certainly yes to 2. I invariably have a look at the ebay FS posted on Mopo and I still have the saved searches on ebay. But while I used to enjoy trawling through the listings hoping to find something unexpected, it's now too tiresome. And, the poster listings on ebay uk seem to have an even higher percentage than the US site of material with ridiculously high starting bids for stuff that seems to have been unsold for years. I imagine there is still decent stuff in there, priced realistically, but it's too much of a grind finding it. As well as US and UK, I used to regularly look through the French site too, but stopped after that became a similarly unrewarding experience. 5 to a degree. Been buying less recently, because of economy, plus my area of collecting has narrowed, so it's a waiting game, and it has to be something I feel I can't miss out on. What ebay used to be for me has been replaced by emovieposter to a degree. Check out what's there once a week, variety is enjoyable, see plenty I haven't seen before, and though I haven't bought much there, I keep looking as inevitably something will come up I will have to have. Also, I do look at dealers' websites more now they've generally improved and I have the time spare that I don't spend on ebay. I don't remember to keep going back to look, so posts about specific additions, or the Recent Additions section being updated works for me, I'll look. Even if I added a whole list to my favourites, to be honest they'd probably languish there, I think a reason to get someone going back at least once a month would be about right. (Damn, just realised I haven't looked at any Polish dealers websites for ages, must try to remember.) As someone who once ebay kicked off completely ignored the dealers I used to buy from, it's interesting that my latest acquisition was a return to tradition and from one of the pre-ebay dealers. That was down to the time-honoured skills of acquiring something very interesting and knowing exactly who'd want it. Obviously things have changed greatly, and how you market yourselves online, but it may be that with the ebay effect waning, there could a return back to the demand for the service dealers can offer. On 4 Jul 2010, at 02:05, channinglylethomson wrote: 7/3/2010 Hello MOPOers -- I got a lot of comments and e-mails from members regarding the subject discussion. I thought I would take a moment and relate the consensus of opinions on this topic. First of all, I should state that I was looking at this question as a result of a low auction sale price on a vintage Rita Hayworth/Fred Astaire linen lobby card from WWII that I had placed on EBAY as a seller. Obviously, I was disappointed with the results. I suppose that means that I am asking this question not from a buyer's point of view but that of a seller and specifically with regard to older Hollywood material that once had a certain luster to it. I've gone through everyone's thoughts and excluded those that I considered self-serving and less significant. 1: the sale price was an obvious disappointment 2: there's a lot of junky material on EBAY causing some people to tune out 3: any auction is obviously a game of chance -- sometimes there is a disappointing result 4: I am honest and don't shill bid up my auctions 5: the current recession is SERIOUS -- people are looking for deals EVERYWHERE 6: most material from the 1930s, 40s, 50s and even 60s in now archaic uninteresting to many collectors 7: there's something to be said for popular genres remaining popular -- sexy women (bad girls) and science-fiction/horror 8: generally speaking, there are very few or no collectors of material on musicals on MOPO I think that about sums it up in my estimation -- I'd like to thank everyone for their input on this question! Best, Channing Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
First off, prices on this title have been trending lower the past few years (a victim of changing tastes). Here are our results: YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - G-VG $53.0001/07/2010 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$58.0011/12/2009 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$34.0010/06/2009 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG$8.0007/28/2009 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$30.0003/05/2009 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$53.0012/16/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - TC; Fr-G $13.0011/25/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - TC;VG-Fn $300.0009/09/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$54.0005/22/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$56.0003/04/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$62.0001/22/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG $77.0001/15/2008 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - G-VG $241.5009/04/2007 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG $155.0008/03/2004 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG $128.0003/23/2004 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG-Fn$112.4901/28/2003 YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER1942LC - VG $100.9906/19/2001 Second, the problem you had is not with our hobby, but with eBay. I have told all who will listen for over two years now that eBay has permanently ruined the collectibles side of their business, by drastically raising fees and by letting their site be overrun with repros and garbage, and now the chickens have come home to roost. I used to spend one hour a day combing eBay for items that I collect (mostly non-movie poster items) and a couple of years ago I quit in disgust, and now spend minimal time on the site, and I constantly receive e-mails from collectors who tell me they no longer go on eBay at all. Here is one of many stories about longtime eBay sellers quitting the site completely after many successful years there: * http://letters.auctionbytes.com/cgi-bin/blog/blog.pl?/comments/2010/6/129641.html#comments * I think you need to re-think your selling strategy, if your current one is to put items on eBay and advertise them solely through forum announcements. Bruce On Fri, Jul 2, 2010 at 12:20 AM, channinglylethomson channinglylethom...@worldnet.att.net wrote: That's really amazing. I guess that means that those early 1930s Paramount lobbies with people like George Raft, Carole Lombard, Marlene Dietrich, Gary Cooper, Cary Grant are pretty much of little or no value now. Nobody knows those people any more! I do think that the sour economy is contributing to this as well. Channing *This begs the question -- what is hot in this hobby? Ideas?* On Jul 1, 2010, at 10:09 PM, Richard Halegua Comic Art wrote: Channing my brother, it's the new reality. the people who wanted that stuff are dying everyday or completed their collections (which is kind of the same thing as dying) I have also been selling Rita Hayworth for bargain basement prices, like Cover Girl for $10 each 20 years from now, most golden age stars will be red dwarfs and no one will collect them except hard core fans At 09:53 PM 7/1/2010, channinglylethomson wrote: Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Channing, for what it's worth and of course speaking for myself, I had no Internet service all day yesterday. Otherwise you can bet I would have bid on that card. I know many collectors of Golden Age musicals, Astaire and/or Hayworth (and they're NOT all old fogies), any one of whom would be happy to own that lobby. Also, for the record, I DID bid on that Hustler lobby you had last week which you also started at .99 and finally sold for $266, which is a very respectable result. So if I were you I wouldn't throw up my hands just yet. Besides the vagaries and inconsistencies of eBay, July and August are also slow selling months. People are on vacation, at the cottage, whatever. Fewer of them are sitting in front of computers looking for posters to buy. Because of this, I usually end up doing more buying than selling during the summer (less competition from other bidders). The up side is I also usually end up with some amazing stuff to kick off the Fall selling season! Dave - Original Message - From: channinglylethomson To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Sent: Friday, July 02, 2010 12:52 AM Subject: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Channing, Yes, $11.50 for that card is a real bummer. Yes, of course it's worth a lot more, and you would have also gotten a lot more for it, had it not been on eBay. I would have paid a lot more for it, but I simply don't have the time to look daily through the endless mounds of ebay auctions. I think that is true for a lot of people. I go through some of Bruce's and Rich's auctions, just out of habit, and because I know them. That's about it. Maybe a couple of other dealers as well, from time to time. But the obsessive habit of sitting day in and day out and watching for bargains on ebay is long behind me. Who's got the time for it? A few years ago it was still a novelty, but nobody can keep up with the sheer avalanche of posters and lobby cards heaped upon us daily via ebay and other on line auctions. In other words, what I'm saying is there is so much stuff on ebay that people simply are tuning off. Zeev From: MoPo List [mailto:mop...@listserv.american.edu] On Behalf Of channinglylethomson Sent: Friday, July 02, 2010 12:53 AM To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Subject: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Yeah, even if I don't know how much hay Rita is worth or why Fred is going up or down the stairs I would have given at least $11.75. And Zeev is right...I don't remember the last time I looked for movie posters on ebay let alone bought one through ebay. From: MoPo List [mailto:mop...@listserv.american.edu] On Behalf Of Zeev Drach Sent: Friday, July 02, 2010 9:35 AM To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Channing, Yes, $11.50 for that card is a real bummer. Yes, of course it's worth a lot more, and you would have also gotten a lot more for it, had it not been on eBay. I would have paid a lot more for it, but I simply don't have the time to look daily through the endless mounds of ebay auctions. I think that is true for a lot of people. I go through some of Bruce's and Rich's auctions, just out of habit, and because I know them. That's about it. Maybe a couple of other dealers as well, from time to time. But the obsessive habit of sitting day in and day out and watching for bargains on ebay is long behind me. Who's got the time for it? A few years ago it was still a novelty, but nobody can keep up with the sheer avalanche of posters and lobby cards heaped upon us daily via ebay and other on line auctions. In other words, what I'm saying is there is so much stuff on ebay that people simply are tuning off. Zeev From: MoPo List [mailto:mop...@listserv.american.edu] On Behalf Of channinglylethomson Sent: Friday, July 02, 2010 12:53 AM To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Subject: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. _ The information contained in this message is proprietary and/or confidential. If you are not the intended recipient, please: (i) delete the message and all copies; (ii) do not disclose, distribute or use the message in any manner; and (iii) notify the sender immediately. In addition, please be aware that any message addressed to our domain is subject to
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Auctions any auction is a game of chance...if you didn't want to sell it low then you should have put a reserve on it. A card of that calibre would have sold easily at a fair/event for $150-200 however there are people canny enough to be on ebay and get a bargain and there are idiots on ebay who gloss over such items. But an auction is a game of chance and when you have a low reserve you have no outcome but what it has sold for. Unless you do what other dealers do and if it is going to low you have a bidder you know bump the price up and if you or your buddy wins it you just pay the listing fees. -Original Message- From: Zeev Drach lobb...@rogers.com To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Sent: Fri, 2 Jul 2010 14:35 Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Channing, Yes, $11.50 for that card is a real bummer. Yes, of course it’s worth a lot more, and you would have also gotten a lot more for it, had it not been on eBay. I would have paid a lot more for it, but I simply don’t have the time to look daily through the endless mounds of ebay auctions. I think that is true for a lot of people. I go through some of Bruce’s and Rich’s auctions, just out of habit, and because I know them. That’s about it. Maybe a couple of other dealers as well, from time to time. But the obsessive habit of sitting day in and day out and watching for bargains on ebay is long behind me. Who’s got the time for it? A few years ago it was still a novelty, but nobody can keep up with the sheer avalanche of posters and lobby cards heaped upon us daily via ebay and other on line auctions. In other words, what I’m saying is there is so much stuff on ebay that people simply are tuning off. Zeev From: MoPo List [mailto:mop...@listserv.american.edu] On Behalf Of channinglylethomson Sent: Friday, July 02, 2010 12:53 AM To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Subject: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
I have a number of automatic searches on Ebay. They go to my email when something I want comes up for auction. It saves me a ton of time. When I sell on Ebay, I put the lowest amount I will take for the item as the opening bid. If it doesn't sell, so be it. John W From: jboh...@aol.com jboh...@aol.com To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Sent: Fri, July 2, 2010 11:05:40 AM Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Auctions any auction is a game of chance...if you didn't want to sell it low then you should have put a reserve on it. A card of that calibre would have sold easily at a fair/event for $150-200 however there are people canny enough to be on ebay and get a bargain and there are idiots on ebay who gloss over such items. But an auction is a game of chance and when you have a low reserve you have no outcome but what it has sold for. Unless you do what other dealers do and if it is going to low you have a bidder you know bump the price up and if you or your buddy wins it you just pay the listing fees. -Original Message- From: Zeev Drach lobb...@rogers.com To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Sent: Fri, 2 Jul 2010 14:35 Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Channing, Yes, $11.50 for that card is a real bummer. Yes, of course it’s worth a lot more, and you would have also gotten a lot more for it, had it not been on eBay. I would have paid a lot more for it, but I simply don’t have the time to look daily through the endless mounds of ebay auctions. I think that is true for a lot of people. I go through some of Bruce’s and Rich’s auctions, just out of habit, and because I know them. That’s about it. Maybe a couple of other dealers as well, from time to time. But the obsessive habit of sitting day in and day out and watching for bargains on ebay is long behind me. Who’s got the time for it? A few years ago it was still a novelty, but nobody can keep up with the sheer avalanche of posters and lobby cards heaped upon us daily via ebay and other on line auctions. In other words, what I’m saying is there is so much stuff on ebay that people simply are tuning off. Zeev From:MoPo List [mailto:mop...@listserv.american.edu] On Behalf Of channinglylethomson Sent: Friday, July 02, 2010 12:53 AM To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Subject: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby? Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
Channing my brother, it's the new reality. the people who wanted that stuff are dying everyday or completed their collections (which is kind of the same thing as dying) I have also been selling Rita Hayworth for bargain basement prices, like Cover Girl for $10 each 20 years from now, most golden age stars will be red dwarfs and no one will collect them except hard core fans At 09:53 PM 7/1/2010, channinglylethomson wrote: Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
Re: [MOPO] Is there something wrong with this hobby?
That's really amazing. I guess that means that those early 1930s Paramount lobbies with people like George Raft, Carole Lombard, Marlene Dietrich, Gary Cooper, Cary Grant are pretty much of little or no value now. Nobody knows those people any more! I do think that the sour economy is contributing to this as well. Channing This begs the question -- what is hot in this hobby? Ideas? On Jul 1, 2010, at 10:09 PM, Richard Halegua Comic Art wrote: Channing my brother, it's the new reality. the people who wanted that stuff are dying everyday or completed their collections (which is kind of the same thing as dying) I have also been selling Rita Hayworth for bargain basement prices, like Cover Girl for $10 each 20 years from now, most golden age stars will be red dwarfs and no one will collect them except hard core fans At 09:53 PM 7/1/2010, channinglylethomson wrote: Is there something wrong with this hobby? I ask this for the following reason. Today, I had an auction closing on EBAY for an original 1941 lobby card -- a beautiful linen-paper portrait card of Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire in a tuxedo from YOU WERE NEVER LOVELIER that I've had for years. I started this auction low because I was conducting a sort of test. I wanted to see if a card like this would reach its real value at auction on EBAY or not. Well, unfortunately, the lobby card sold for a closing amount of $11.50. 15 years ago this card would have sold for between $125. and $200. You probably could have made a phone call and sold it for that. Now it sells for $11.50. I posted the auction announcement on various sites including two separate ones on MOPO. It ended up selling to a man in NYC for $11.50. Now as you may imagine, I was disturbed that it sold for so little. In the future, I will probably only start one of these low opening bid, Bruce Hershenson-style auctions if the piece is something like a lobby card or poster for a major 1950s science fiction film or a classic movie or obviously collectible poster or card. I think a lobby card like this one is still of value despite changing tastes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think there are still people who know who Rita Hayworth is and who Fred Astaire is and admire their work and their films. However, since no one in MOPO found this worth bidding on, even if they could have gotten the card for as little as $12.50, maybe I'm all wrong. Thoughts please? Channing Thomson P.S. One other consideration -- I live in a major American city (San Francisco) where I routinely see elderly Chinese people digging through trash cans all over downtown trying to find cans or plastic bottles for recycling. Sometimes they carry big plastic bags of these balanced on bamboo polls over their shoulders. These are men and women who are often as old as 70 or 80. You really can't go more than a block without seeing them digging through the trash. Nobody seems to think there's anything wrong with this here but it disturbs me and makes me think we may actually be in a depression rather than just one the typical recessions. The economy definitely BLOWS! Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
